Australian resources

Hi Nick,

Can't offer much in the way of fly fishing advise but I will be watching this thread as it is something I want to get into myself.

I have a trip coming up shortly which will see a few days walking either on the beach or very close to so I am considering getting a rod setup to take.

Cheers
Mark

Hi Nick,

You will not get much help about Tenkara rods from the Australian fishing shops, until the recent Flylife articles on Tenkara fishing, most would have never even heard of Tenkara rods, your best source of information would be from tenkara USA http://www.tenkarausa.com there are a few Aussies that post there. I am about to do a post on Tenkara USA on Tenkara techniques that I use for trout fishing in the snowies but as the season has just finished it wont be until October until you can fish in the area.

Tony

Thanks Tony,
I am planning my first trip in November. Any tips on location? Also what rod do you have? I'm looking at the 12' Iwana.
nick

Hi Nick,

I have a Yamame and a BPL Hane which has not been used yet.

Check this thread out http://www.tenkarausa.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=32

And also look at the FlyLife forum
http://www.flylife.com.au/phpbb3/index.php?sid=017b2b33366033c48db56d61cb99a647

Nearly every river in the Snowies is suitable for tenkara fishing, in my experience the more remote the better the fishing.

Some rivers to try.
Thredbo, Gungarlin, Tooma, Goodradigbee, Yarrangobilly, Eucumbean, Snowy, Geehi, Tumut and many more.

Tony

Tony, you should run a course. Charge everyone a US$50 Hermit's Hut voucher!

Rod

Hi Rod,

>Tony, you should run a course. Charge everyone a US$50 Hermit's Hut voucher!

Thanks for the good idea but I am really only a beginner flyfisher.

Tony

Anyone know about spots in the Blue Mountains. I've hiked so many spots there and have never seen any fish. Am I missing something?

I've found a few random threads on other forums but they have been pretty vague.

Hi Nick,

I have not fished the Blue Mountains but I know there is some very good fishing to be had there, around Oberon probably a good place to start.

Check this site out.

http://www.mynrma.com.au/cps/rde/xchg/mynrma/hs.xsl/blue_mts_fishing.htm

Tony

Off the top of my head, Cox's, Kowmung, Fish River (see below), Oberon (mainly the Dam, I think?), Chifley Dam…

I have been fly fishing a few times on the Fish River around Tarana. We have stayed in a local B&B and at the Tarana pub. There is a free camp ground right next to the river, now I am not 100% on this but I am pretty sure the free camp ground is on Mutton Falls Rd, punch the following numbers into Google maps: -33.548581,149.792327 .

The first time we went fly fishing was at Tarana, we had a guided weekend with Robbie Lee from Fish River Fly Fishing Company. There are a range of guided fishing trip operators west of the Blue Mountains just do a bit of searching on the web. I do feel it was worth the money to have someone show me the ropes, also it was a nice weekend away.

Cheers,
Michael.

Thanks guys, lots of ideas now.
A weekend hike in Kanangra walls and fishing the kowmung looks promising.

Tarana and the fish river looks good too.

Nick – just a note to say that for Rivers in NSW you've missed the season for trout – it ended at midnight on the monday night of the June long weekend just gone, and opens again midnight of the Friday night before the October long weekend.

Impoundments reamin open for bass / trout / etc.

Some of the harder to get at bits of the Blue Mts rivers remain open as they are not technically notified trout waters.

The best fishing in the Blue Mountains tends to be in the Central Tablelands.

Welcome to Sinny, enjoy !

Thanks Julian,

I've been going over the FISHERIES MANAGEMENT ACT looking at seasons.
So if the waters I want to fish are not mentioned in this document I can fish them year round? How active are trout over the winter?

Worst case I will be out opening weekend in October.
Nick

technically yes you can fish them. They are pretty limited in number though:

The Coxs below the Little;
The Kedumba;
very lower section of the Wollondilly
and some feeder streams pretty much covers it. There is also a downstream exclusion zone for water supply.

They used to be known as a winter spawn run but very low levels in Burragorang mean that there are huge sand flats to get across and it prolly needs another reasonablke season to get OK. From the first rains in late May.

Wentworh Falls lake is open all year.

Check the rec fishing pages on http://www.fisheries.nsw.gov.au

enjoy the northern beaches – I grew up in Av and my folks are now in Palmy. Nice part of the world.

You could flyfish for flathead off the shore in Pittwater, and aussies salmon (Kahawai) or Kingies off a boat.

It is beautiful up here, but would actually rather live in Avalon. We're pretty far up here, but you can't beat the views.

I'm excited my Tenkara Iwana 12' is ordered and on the way. I'm now looking at stater fly boxes with all the basics.

October seems so far away.
nick

if you want some specific advice on flyflishing, western or tenkara, I'm happy to help. PM me some time. I'm a flyfisherman first, and backpack to indulge my habit, rather than fishing occasionally when I backpack.

Some insights are:
the gear need a slightly different focus for a person going bakcpacking to flyfish, than someone going backpacking with the option of flyfishing. for example, you need warmer clothes for fishing than walking, you don't use your base camp warms when fishing (sooner or later youll go head over heels), and thus you need to re-think the gear approach (e.g. go polar fleece etc for day wear, and skip the base camp downs, but increase the rating of bag – you stay in gear that can be soaked and then strip down into a higher rating bag). And, if your goal is to flyfish, then some choices are different compared to having the option of fishing when backpacking.

And, you'll need to think about wading, especially if fishing shoulder seasons, on some rivers. And what this means in terms of gear and exposure to elements.

Craig

in October the focus will still primarily be nymphs as it is very early in the season. At that time, with the higher flows, you need to ensure you have some beadheads to get down to the fish, not all unweighted nymphs. The fish probably won't move off the bottom to any fly passing overhead, so you'll need to get the fly to them. the iwana can case light beadheads fine (e.g. tungsten size 16 or 14's) – I was using mine on closing day. Use fluoro level line, not the tenkara furled line for this on the iwana.

Some general dry pattern would cover you for an early rise, but most action will probably still be under the surface, so I'd clip the pattern to get it low anyway. Low riding emergers would do nearly as well most of the time. Tenkara wets are an option at this time.

p.s. flies retail for $1.50-$3 ea. in Aus. per fly.

craig

A friend of mine wrote a review of the Tenkara in the June issue on the website http://www.bloodknot.net

"Tenkara isn’t a rod – it’s a way. Come to it with an open mind. Don’t expect rock hard hook-sets or letting a fish run while you stand in one place. This system that comes “from the heavens” not surprisingly subdues the pride of man, leveling the playing field between the creatures at either end. Conform yourself to it instead of trying to conform it to your western sensibilities, and you’ll find an entirely new way to experience and enjoy fly fishing."